I’ll admit it. A small part of me became a journalist at ASU to escape the heat at Sun Devil Stadium.
Those metal bleachers left more red marks than my 10th grade English teacher’s pen.
Thankfully, through the help of The State Press and a media credential, I escaped the white-hot sun and found myself in the comfortable air-conditioned press box.
But while I was sipping on ice cold Diet Coke in a 75 degree room, I couldn’t help but look down on the stadium and see my fellow classmates baking in the sun. After I got over the unavoidable “sucks to be you” thoughts, I began to realize how awful the situation was.
Check out the new design plans for Sun Devil Stadium!
Good news Sun Devil fans, those days are officially numbered.According to a report from ASUdevils.com, the stadium, built in 1958, is about to undergo drastic remodeling.
The site’s publisher, Chris Karpman, wrote Sun Devil Stadium will experience a multiyear makeover, complete with a shading system that will cover both the playing field and the seating areas.
That’s right, a giant awning hovering over you, blocking the sun, while you enjoy an ASU football game.
What a glorious idea.
No longer will sweaty body parts stick to clothing. No longer will the seats at the top of each section, the ones with shade, be better than the lower rows. And no longer will trips to the bathroom be the most comfortable part of attending a game.
According to ASU Media Relations, the stadium’s renovation plans will be released in a press conference Wednesday at 11 a.m., meaning the public will finally get its first glimpse of the new stadium.
For starters, I’m looking forward to seeing an artist’s rendering of these plans. I can only begin to imagine what the shading will look like.
Sun Devil Stadium will still technically be an open-air facility, so maybe the engineers can complete the structure by painting the sky and clouds on the bottom of the shading for that authentic feel.
Or what if the system was in the shape of the newly designed pitchfork logo? However, that might leave some spectators sitting in between the prongs a little unhappy.
The other major part of the renovations is that the stadium will see a reduced seating capacity. Right now, Sun Devil Stadium seats more than 72,000, but after the remolding, it’ll likely go down to around 60,000.
I like the feel of a more intimate college stadium. Last season, I traveled to two relatively small stadiums - Rice-Eccles Stadium, home of the Utah Utes, and Autzen Stadium, home of the Oregon Ducks - and loved the atmospheres. In the collegiate football world, less is sometimes more.
Regardless, when all of the details do finally emerge, one thing will be certain for future Sun Devil fans: Leave your sunscreen at home.
Reach the columnist at tyler.emerick@asu.edu
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